The best way to consistently be successful in social media is to measure everything you do. What works for your company may not work for another. By measuring your social media campaigns, you can analyze your return on investment and adjust for future strategy.

Use the platforms that match your target market. If you are trying to reach Millennials- Instagram may be a better social media platform than Facebook.

Don’t get to hung up on the “shiny new object” phenomenon. There are hundreds of social media platforms, monitoring and measurement tools. Don’t feel like you need to try all of them. Focus on a few that are best for your target market and business objectives. Master and Measure.

Your social media strategy should align with your overall brand/marketing strategy. The stronger your brand strategy is, the bigger impact social media will have on your business.

What is driving social media changes? Behavior, technology or a combination of both?

Younger generations such as the Millennials are driving change in social media in terms of how they want their content, what kind of content they respond to and what platforms they are using. Now that Millennials are in the workforce, this is making a big impact the social media strategies they create for their brand/company. According to Magisto Research, Millennials spend more than 58% of their marketing budget on social media, 41% of mobile media and 88% on video digital advertising. In fact, for the first time, 2016 is the first year in history that digital advertising surpassed TV spending. Wow!

The Millennial Generation, both as consumers and developers, are defining what the future of social media technology and marketing will hold. Social media is no longer an extension of marketing but the driver of overall marketing strategy.

Follow my blog for more marketing tips and find me on Twitter at @Sara_Given